A Lack Of Marriageable Men Is Affecting Women's Career Choices

A shortage of husband material is the driving force
behind the rapid rise of women in high-paying
positions and college classrooms.

Tom Jacobs at Miller McCune reports that this scarcity
is leading women "to prioritize money and material success." In
other words, if a woman believes that her ability to find a
potential long-term mate is jeopardized, her professional
decisions are greatly impacted.

"Sex ratios involving a scarcity of men led women to seek
lucrative careers because of the difficulty women have in finding
an investing, long-term mate under such circumstances.
Accordingly, this low-male sex ratio produced the strongest
desire for lucrative careers in women who are least able to
secure a mate."

Researchers examined "the ratio of unmarried men to
unmarried women ages 15 to 44; the ratio of men to women in 10
high-paying jobs, and the average maternal age at first birth"
for the 50 states and D.C. They found that as the "number of
marriageable men decreased, women had fewer children, and when
women did have children, they had them at later ages.”

Jacobs concludes that "perhaps it’s time to add a corollary
to the cliche: If a good man is hard to find, you’d better find a
good job."